The 5 Books you need to Read to be a Good Russian Analyst
"Nobody gets abs in 30 days and nobody becomes a geo-political expert overnight."
Mr. Cody is a US Army veteran who comes from Tennessee where he served in both the 101st and 5th special forces group as an intelligence officer. He served 9 months in Afghanistan with the 101st, Lithuanin SOF (Aitvaras) and Polish SOF (JWK) as both a planner and targeter. He has his bachelors in political science with a minor in international relations, and 7 years of intelligence experience.
Mr. Cody runs myfoxhole.co, a platform that aims to empower individuals to share valuable insights for top-quality analysis across military, geopolitical, and social spheres. This platform is on its way to becoming a leading authority in analysis, fostering a community of informed discourse and positive global change.
Mr. Cody is a friend of ALCON and trusted intelligence professional.
With the Ukraine War entering its second year, I figured it might be a good idea to give everyone a quick “Russian Analyst Boot Camp”. Nobody gets abs in 30 days and nobody becomes a geo-political expert overnight. However, if I had to give someone a quick guide on how to quickly become sharp on Russian warfare I would first start with these 5 books:
Ivan’s War by Catherine Merridale
If one wants to understand the Russian army one needs to know their history. It is one of pain, suffering, and hardship with battles lasting months and kill counts in the millions. Anyone born in the West would find the Eastern Front of WW2 harrowing if not downright appalling. It is important to read though if you want to understand the psyche and mentality of Russian soldiers. How are they willing to put up with tough battles? Why do they prefer the defense versus the offense? What is a major defeat for them? This book will help plant the seeds of understanding.
The Russian Way of War by Dr. Lester W. Grau and Charles K. Bartles
They say the backbone of the United States Military is the NCO corps. So, what is the backbone of the Russian army, and can it be broken? You need to know where the back is if you’re going to break it and “The Russian Way of War” does a good job teaching an anatomy lesson. So read this to learn how the Russian army is structured from their lower enlisted to their Tank Guards Divisions.
One Soldier’s War Arkady Babchenko
With Russian history out of the way, and the Russian structure covered, you might be asking yourself, “What is the Russian army really like though?” Well, look no further than “One Soldier’s War”. The book pulls no punches while telling the story of a conscript in the Chechen-Russian war. The pain inflicted upon conscripts by professional Russian soldiers and the ferocity of the Chechen fighters make GWOT look like a dodgeball tournament at an elementary school. This book gives you a complete understanding of what it is really like to be in the Russian army as a conscript or lower enlisted.
ATP 7-100.1 and TC 7-100.2 US Army
We know the past, and the present, now let's talk about their playbook. I’ve heard it said many times that “Russians just do human wave attacks!” and I promise you that you won’t find any of that here. What you will find is tactics with overwhelming fire support and air defense/electronic warfare “Snow globes”. There are lessons on why the Russians prefer the defense but understand that attacks are necessary to win wars. These books are an easy read in bits and pieces with a new lesson every day or week depending on your reading speed.
Zinky Boys By Svetlana Alexievich
The final piece of the Russian war machine is the home front. How are the Russian people able to absorb such huge losses and major battles? How are the Russian people just able to accept the wars? What is it like for returning veterans? Reading “Zinky Boys” helps in understanding not just the soldiers of the Russian army, but their families and mindsets.